It was a celebration of First Nations women, their stories and their storytelling on Saturday night for Blak Day Out.
A mini-festival staged as part of Open Season, it was a stacked line-up with a mix of genres, featuring rising stars and Australian musical icons Christine Anu, Thelma Plum, Miss Kaninna, The Stiff Gins, GLVES, dameeeela and Kritty (26 July).The wet weather didn't put a dampener on the sold-out show, but did force a bit of a reshuffle of stages, with punters keen on dancing to the early DJ sets sent from the courtyard to be high and dry upstairs at The Princess Theatre venue.
The first act to hit the auditorium stage was GLVES, a locally-based artist of Kaurareg, Fijian, and Polynesian heritage. Her music can be described as blend of ethereal pop and electronica that weaves in elements of the natural world.
Next up were The Stiff Gins, an acoustic duo of Wiradjuri and Yorta Yorta woman Kaleena Briggs and Yuwaalaraay woman Nardi Simpson. No strangers to the music scene, the band has more than 25 years of experience sharing their music.
While on this night they also shared the stage with their guitarist during their set, they closed their slot with a stirring a capella performance with just their voices ringing through the hall.
Stiff Gins - image © Zane Taprell
From performing veterans to a newer face in the scene, Miss Kaninna came on like a seasoned professional making her presence felt from the get-go. Like all the artists on the bill, she mixes poetry with politics, and to borrow some of her own lyrics, she is gloriously 'very loud, very, very, loud'.
A Yorta Yorta, Dja Dja Wurrung, Kalkadoon and Yirendali woman, Miss Kaninna delivered a short but powerful set that showcased her ability to straddle multiple genres.
Going from the Tayla-esque stylings of 'Push Up' and 'Friends' with their sensual flow to the irreverence of 'Kush' to the sass of 'Dawg In Me', she changed direction completely with a cover of Charley Pride's 'Crystal Chandelier'; telling a story about line dancing to the song in her grandmother's house as a young girl and declaring that country music was blak music too.
Throughout, she shared stories where her politics were also at the forefront, including her uplifting new song 'Black Print' highlighting the experiences of Indigenous women that was detailed with nuance.
Closing with two of her biggest hits and what people have come to say is her signature sound, Miss Kaninna had the crowd fired up, dancing and chanting along to 'Pinnacle Bitch' and 'Blak Britney', both a mix of upbeat hip hop and dance with a message delivered with attitude.
Miss Kaninna - image © Zane Taprell
From a modern undeniable force to an icon of Australian song, Christine Anu and her accompanying band (including her daughter on back-up vocals) were next to grace the stage.
Starting with some island vibes with songs inspired by nursery rhymes that told stories about life in the Torres Strait, Anu stepped the crowd back through the journey of her career and the people she's worked with and been inspired by. There were songs like 'Last Train' (penned with Paul Kelly) and 'Coz I'm Free', written after seeing those words tattooed on the skin of Cathy Freeman.
While she faced a few minor tech issues during ballad 'Dive', they were quickly shaken off with 'Fire & Water', a song she said was about the dynamics of love, and 'Mothers Child' to round out a reflective part of the evening.
Christine Anu - image © Zane Taprell
An experienced performer, Anu brought it home with a triple treat for the fans that prompted a giant sing-along with her cover of 'Sunshine On A Rainy Day' leading into her iconic version of 'My Island Home' (with lyrics changed to reflect her as a Torres Strait Islander woman).
With arguably the biggest mass off bodies on the dance floor seen all night, she closed with 'Party' and had young and old singing about their "deadly red shoes".
Popular Brisbane 'local' Thelma Plum, the final act of the night, brought her own unique energy to close out the show, singing her blend of folk-pop ballads.
With a most expressive face, Plum gets lost in the music of each song and rolled through many of her hits, easing into it with 'Wiseman' and 'Woke Blokes' before warming up into 'Don't Let A Good Girl Down' before 'The Brown Snake' from her EP 'Meanjin', which was a tribute to the city, and naturally got a rapturous response from the Brisbane faithful.
Zipporah Anu - image © Zane Taprell
Cuts from her two successful albums, 2019's 'Better In Blak' and last year's 'I'm Sorry, Now Say It Back', came thick and fast with 'Nobody's Baby', 'We Don't Talk About It', 'Freckles' – where the crowd provided the 'do wop' vocals – 'All The Pretty Little Horses' and 'Not Angry Anymore' were mixed in with more from her EPs.
Although a bundle of energy, Plum sipped from a cup of tea as the evening progressed – one of an assortment of drinks she brought out onstage with her (citing her ADHD for being unable to settle on one) as she broke between songs to speak to the crowd.
It was especially poignant when she spoke about the lyrics in 'Homecoming Queen', referencing the 1967 referendum and what it meant for her family. In amongst the song, she also found time for a sweet moment near the end of the performance to bring up some fans onto the stage to join her and her band, with four young girls making special signs for the show.
Thelma Plum - image © Zane Taprell
Thanking the audience for coming along, as well as her artist friend who made a custom drum skin cover of a sparkling Aboriginal flag adorned with glitter, the band briefly left the stage before coming back almost instantly for the encore.
Leading with 'Clumsy Love', they of course wrapped up the evening with 'Better In Blak' – a most appropriate number to sum up what had been a night celebrating female blak excellence.
Blak Day Out was curated by Alethea Beetson from Blak Social Presented by Blak Social, Open Season and QPAC'S Clancestry and sponsored by Brisbane City Council.
Image © Zane Taprell
More photos from the concert.
